Ceremony For Unnamed Hospital Held

New Hospital As Yet Unnamed

November 04, 1993|By FRANK SPENCER-MOLLOY; Courant Medical Writer

They still have not agreed on what to call it, but officials from three hospitals came together Wednesday to hold a ceremony marking the beginning of construction for the new home of Newington Children's Hospital in Hartford.

Demolition began last week on two apartment buildings at the site between Seymour and Washington streets adjoining Hartford Hospital.

When completed in three years, the 138-bed facility will house the pediatric departments of Newington Children's Hospital, the University of Connecticut Health Center and Hartford Hospital.

Even as construction begins, the identity of the new hospital is still up in the air. Children's hospital spokesman Thomas Hanley said there have been no further talks since UConn's board of directors last year stipulated the facility should be named after the university. Newington has not publicly responded.

UConn's condition reflects, in part, the strong presence the university will have in the new teaching hospital, including control over its top medical post.

A banner recently hung over a garage entrance next to the construction site finesses the uncertainty. It carries the Newington logo, but it does not give a name for the new children's hospital.

In prepared remarks, John Springer, president of Newington and Hartford hospitals' parent corporation, Connecticut Health System Inc., alluded to the wider debate that delayed Wednesday's ground breaking by years.

Addressing a group of children gathered for the occasion, Springer said, "I'd like you to see what [can happen] in 13 years."

It has been more than a decade since Newington Children's Hospital opened talks with Hartford Hospital about merging their pediatric operations, an act that would transform Newington from a largely rehabilitative center to a full-service hospital.

When formally announced five years ago, the plan drew opposition from St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, which was

fearful of potential losses in its pediatric market share.

Under political pressure, the Newington plan was later scaled back. The state in 1992 approved a $72 million structure, a figure that does not include financing costs.

This past summer, Newington went back to state regulators to seek approval of $17 million more. The request, which awaits a decision from the state, would bring the price tag above the $90 million the hospital originally sought. The hospital maintains the increase is needed for additional space and does not represent an expansion of services